ISSN 2653-9454

Issue No. 8 | July 2018

THE JULY 2018 ATTICA (CENTRAL GREECE) WILDFIRES

Dr. Efthymis Lekkas, Dr. Panayotis Carydis, PhD c. Spyridon Mavroulis, Dr. Michalis Diakakis, PhD c. Emmanuel Andreadakis, MSc Marilia Gogou, MSc Nafsika-Ioanna Spyrou, Dr. Miltiadis Athanassiou, MSc Elina Kapourani, Dr. Emmanuel Vassilakis, MSc Evaggelia Kotsi, Dr. Phoebe- Demeter Speis, MSc John Delakouridis, PhD c. Dimitrios Milios, MSc Katerina-Nafsika Katsetsiadou, Dr. Konstantinos Lagouvardos, Dr. Vassiliki Kotroni, Dr. Thodoris Giannaros, MSc Stavros Dafis, Dr. Athanassios Karagiannidis, Dr. Katerina Papagiannaki, Dr. Margarita Arianoutsou, Dr. Isaak Parcharidis ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 2

About Non-periodic publication of the Post-graduate Studies Publishers: Program “Environmental Disasters & Crises Dr. Efthymis Lekkas Management Strategies" of the National & Kapodistrian Dr. Nikolaos Voulgaris University of Athens, issued after significant events for Dr. Stylianos Lozios the immediate information of the scientific community and the general public. The publication includes also Technical Editing: scientific data from various research teams from PhD c. Spyridon Mavroulis universities, organizations and research institutes. Communication: PhD c. Spyridon Mavroulis ([email protected]) MSc Alexia Grambas ([email protected]) MSc Katerina-Nafsika Katsetsiadou ([email protected]) Copyrights Scientific Mission All copyrights of scientific data belong to their Of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Faculty of Geology respective owners, while the copyrights of this and Geoenvironment, Department of Dynamic Tectonic Applied Geology publication belong to the publishers. Contributors Cited as Dr. Efthymis Lekkas, Dr. Panayotis Carydis, Dr. Konstantinos Lagouvardos, Lekkas, E., Carydis, P., Lagouvardos, K., Mavroulis, S., PhD c. Spyridon Mavroulis, Dr. Michalis Diakakis, PhD c. Emmanuel Diakakis, M., Andreadakis, Emm., Gogou, M.E., Spyrou, N.I., Andreadakis, MSc Marilia Gogou, MSc Nafsika-Ioanna Spyrou, Dr. Miltiadis Athanassiou, M., Kapourani, E., Arianoutsou, M., Vassilakis, Athanassiou, MSc Elina Kapourani, Dr. Margarita Arianoutsou, Dr. Emmanuel M., Parcharidis P. Kotsi, E., Speis, P.D., Delakouridis, J., Vassilakis, Dr. Isaak Parcharidis, MSc Evaggelia Kotsi, Dr. Phoebe-Demeter Milios, D., Kotroni, V., Giannaros, T., Dafis, S., Kargiannidis, Speis, MSc John Delakouridis, PhD c. Dimitrios Milios, Dr. Vassiliki Kotroni, A., Papagiannaki, K. (2018). The July 2018 Attica (Central Dr. Thodoris Giannaros, MSc Stavros Dafis, Dr. Athanassios Karagiannidis, Greece) Wildfires – Scientific Report (Version 1.0). Dr. Katerina Papagiannaki Newsletter of Environmental, Disaster, and Crisis The scientific team visited the fire-affected area of Mati (Eastern Attica) Management Strategies, 8, ISSN 2653-9454. shortly after the destructive wildfire in order to conduct a reconnaissance of the affected area and to assess the causes and the destructive effects on the natural and built environment. This study was funded by the Environmental, Disaster and Crises Management Strategies Post graduate Program of the Department of Geology and Geoenvironment of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. https://edcm.edu.gr ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 3

GENERAL INFORMATION

In the early afternoon of Monday, July 23, 2018 a wildfire broke out in the forest surrounding the settlement of Kallitehnoupolis on Penteli Mt., approx. 20km northeast of Athens and 5 km to the west of the Eastern Attica coastline. The cause of the wildfire remains still unknown. Because of the extreme weather conditions, fire spread swiftly to the east, affecting, as it travelled along, the settlements of Kallitechnoulopis, Neos Voutzas, Rafina and reached Mati, where it finally stopped right at the coastline. The Fire Service was made aware of the fire ignition point at 16.57 (local time) and responded by sending 60 persons on 24 vehicles, 15 vehicles belonging to registered volunteers, 2 ground forces teams, as well as 3 Canadair aircrafts and a helicopter. Organized evacuation operations took place at a church charity institution (Lyreion) and all children summer camps of the wider area.

The wildfire, classified as a crown fire, aided by very strong winds of an approximate velocity of 90 km/h, crossed the main highway of the area (Marathonos Av.) within a very short time (estimated approximately 30 to 40 min depending on the location), and moved towards the settlement of Mati, where it reached the sea with a fire front of approximately 1 km, allowing for a minimal response time by the inhabitants and numerous visitors of the area. The difficult weather conditions, the area morphology and the town configuration resulted in the entrapment of a great number of people.

The aftermath is tragic. The fire-affected area is approx. 12.8 km2 (1275.9 ha), estimated by satellite data provided by the COPERNICUS Emergency Management Service – Mapping platform. Within the area, there are approx. 1220 totally destroyed buildings (according to carried out official inspections) and 305 burned vehicles. The days following the event, the authorities recovered at least 91 bodies from the scene (updated 31/7/2018 at 11.00am). Several missing persons were reported and tens of injured (approximately 200 at some point) were transferred to nearby hospitals. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 4

METEOROLOGICAL DATA

Detailed wind modelling The following video shows the evolution of the speed and direction of the wind in temporal terms over the eastern part of Attica, between Monday 23/7/18 15.30 (local time) and Tuesday 24/7/2018 at 06.00 (local time), as it was modelled from the WRF-SFIRE forecasting model (with high spatial resolution of 667m) Snapshots from the video record the dramatic increase of the wind, of W and SW direction, at the break of the fire (17.00 of 23rd) until 21.00 the same day. This fact is believed to be crucial and contributed largely to the high velocity of the fire front and its quick movement towards Mati town.

Timeline of wind direction and intensity, during the event. Strong western winds approach from Penteli Mt. and reach the area of N. Voutzas, Rafina and Mati between 17:00 and 17:30. From that time on, the wildfire has a rapid downslope spread towards the coast.

16:30 17:01 17:31 18:11

18:38 19:08 19:41 20:11

National Observatory of Athens www.meteo.gr ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 5

METEOROLOGICAL DATA

Timeline of wind direction and intensity, during the event. Strong western winds approach from Penteli Mt. and reach the area of N. Voutzas, Rafina and Mati between 17:00 and 17:30. From that time on, the wildfire has a rapid downslope spread towards the coast.

20:41 21:12 21:32 22:11

22:39 23:08 23:32

National Observatory of Athens www.meteo.gr ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 6

METEOROLOGICAL DATA

Winds in Attica on Monday 23/07

The condensed situation on Monday 23/07 resulted in the predominance of stormy west-northwest winds in Eastern Sterea and Attica. As the following map displaying the wind gusts from all of our stations in Attica, the bursts reached 100-120 km/h in several areas of Attica, while in the greater part of the Region the bursts exceeded 60 km/h in velocity. It should be noted that the western winds as downslope winds in the eastern regions of Attica result in significant temperature rise (more than 37 °C) and low humidity, creating ideal conditions for rapid fire spreading.

It is noteworthy that the wind gusts recorded on Monday 23/07 by the meteorological stations of the NOA in Isthmos, Agioi Theodoroi, Kapareli Viotia, Parnitha, Penteli, Ano Liosia, Neos Cosmos were the highest recorded in the summer months over the last eight years -since they have been installed in many cases regardless of wind direction.

Lagouvardos K., Dafis S., Kotroni V. (2018) http://www.meteo.gr/articleview.cfm?id=720 ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 7

BOUNDARIES OF THE FIRE-AFFECTED AREA

From COPERNICUS Emergency Management Story Mapping http://emergency.copernicus.eu/mapping/system/files/components/EMSR300_02RAFINA_01DELINEATION_MAP_v1_300dpi.jpg ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 8

BOUNDARIES OF THE FIRE-AFFECTED AREA

From COPERNICUS Emergency Management Story Mapping http://emergency.copernicus.eu/mapping/list-of-components/EMSR300 ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 9

AVERAGE RATE OF SPREAD CALCULATION BASED ON EVIDENCE

Video from Panos Kokkinidis facebook page Went live on Monday 23/7/18 on 17.39 local time

https://www.facebook.com/pkokkinidis/videos/vb.1474624093/102166405783 54939/?type=2&video_source=user_video_tab

This is the position from where the video was captured shown here in google street view imagery ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 10

AVERAGE RATE OF SPREAD CALCULATION BASED ON EVIDENCE

The progress of fire-front is presented with time Based on the presented timing the average information based on documentary evidence velocity of fire movement is between 3-4.1 (videos, pictures and interviews of km/h. However, there is evidence that in eyewitnesses). between there were locations were the fire accelerated to higher velocity values ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 11

CHANGE IN FIRE BEHAVIOUR DUE TO DIFFERENCES IN VEGETATION

Differences in fuels (type and amount of vegetation) due to previous fires (2009), could have led to differences in fire behaviour and rate of spread of the fire-front eastwards ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 12

CHANGE IN FIRE BEHAVIOUR DUE TO DIFFERENCES IN VEGETATION

Fire limit of 2009 Amiridis, V., C. Zerefos, S. Kazadzis, E. Gerasopoulos, K. Eleftheratos, M. Vrekoussis, A. Stohl et al. "Impact of the 2009 Attica wild fires on the air quality in urban Athens." Atmospheric environment 46 (2012): 536-544. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 13

REMOTE SENSING DATA

Infrared False color image (pre-fire) ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 14

REMOTE SENSING DATA

Infrared False color image Infrared(post False-fire) color image (post-fire)

Infrared False color image (post-fire) ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 15

REMOTE SENSING DATA

Landsat-8 (15-9-2017) High Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, NDVI (red) Ν. Makri Ν. Makri

Ag. Andreas Ag. Andreas

N.Voutzas Mati N.Voutzas Mati Daou Daou

Kallitechnoupoli Kallitechnoupoli Rafina Rafina

Composite RGB image (Landsat 8, September 2017) Dense vegetation areas (high NDVI values) in the fire of the broader fire affected area. Green color affected area. Large areas of continuing forest zones indicates the existence of vegetation. from the mountain to the coast are interrupted only by Marathonos Ave. North of N. Voutzas (in yellow circle), forest that had remained unburned from previous wildfires, in contrast to the areas to the west and southwest, which has been repeatedly burned. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 16

BOUNDARIES OF THE FIRE-AFFECTED AREA

Cub-Sat constellation satellite image Date acquisition: 27/07/2018 Time: 11:34 ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 17

REMOTE SENSING DATA

Google Earth (27-4-2017)

Ν. Βουτζάς Μάτι

Google Earth imagery of the severely hit area of N. Voutzas - Mati. Forest zones and areas of dense vegetation form corridors that the wildfire followed across Marathonos avenue. Up right: High NDVI (see previous). ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 18

UAV (DRONE) DATA

Google Earth imagery of the severely hit area of Neos Voutzas

UAV image of the marked area after the wildfire. Corridors that the wildfire followed through the settlement ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 19

UAV (DRONE) DATA

UAV image from Neos Voutzas settlement to the east (Mati area). Where forest vegetation continued downhill, Marathonos avenue did not form an obstacle to downspread. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 20

UAV (DRONE) DATA

Vectors of wildfire uninterrupted spread mapped with the aid of UAS footage from Neos Voutzas to Mati ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 21

VECTORS OF WILDFIRE UNINTERRUPTED SPREAD MAPPED WITH THE AID OF UAV

17:31

18:11

Vectors of wildfire uninterrupted spread mapped with the aid of UAV footage from Neos Voutzas to Mati ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 22

VECTORS OF WILDFIRE UNINTERRUPTED SPREAD MAPPED WITH THE AID OF UAV ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 23

IMPACTS ON THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT Stands of Aleppo pine trees mixed with Cypress trees and shrubby vegetation ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 24

IMPACTS ON THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT Stands of Aleppo pine trees surrounding the houses; burned branches of shrubs are also present ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 25

IMPACTS ON THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT Some vegetation patches have remained unburned

A small olive trees plantation which escaped fire ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 26

IMPACTS ON HUMAN Access to the beach of the fire-affected area was full of obstacles

Access to the beach was difficult due to the steep slopes of the coast in the eastern part of the area. Consequently, people have difficulty approaching the coastline during the course of the fire in order to reach a safer environment ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 27

IMPACTS ON HUMAN Narrow escape routes to the sea

1 2 3

2

1 3 ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 28

IMPACTS ON HUMAN Narrow escape routes to the sea

coastline

escape route

FIRE LIMIT

Burned area ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 29

IMPACTS ON HUMAN Sites of entrapment – vehicle congestion

35 cars congested and abandoned in a small space, totally burned (Snapshot from published video from military aircraft) ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 30

IMPACT ON THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Buildings with reinforced concrete frame & masonry infill - partition walls

Destruction of external and internal combustible contents of buildings caused by firebrands attack, radiant heat exposure and/or flame contact ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 31

IMPACT ON THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Buildings with reinforced concrete frame & masonry infill - partition walls

Destruction of external and internal combustible contents of 2- and 3-storeys buildings caused by firebrands attack, radiant heat exposure and/or flame contact ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 32

IMPACT ON THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Buildings with reinforced concrete frame & masonry infill - partition walls

Various damage on masonry buildings with load-bearing masonry walls ranging from destruction of external and internal combustible contents induced by firebrands attack, radiant heat exposure and/or flame contact, to partial collapse of the building ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 33

IMPACT ON THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Building with light timber framing system and plasterboards Collapse of burned wood roofs, decomposition of the exterior and interior wall materials almost into powder due to extreme temperatures that are hard for materials to endure without degrading, melting and buckling of the galvanized light hexagonal wire mesh and subsequent cracking and collapse of the walls, near total or total collapse of the structure due to failure of the structural elements ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 34

IMPACT ON THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Building with light timber framing system and plasterboards

Destruction of external and internal combustible contents in buildings constructed with extremely cheap and inadequate materials: Collapse of burned wood roofs, decomposition of the exterior and interior wall materials almost into powder, melting and buckling of the galvanized light hexagonal wire mesh and subsequent cracking and collapse of the walls, near total or total collapse of the structure due to failure of the structural elements. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 35

IMPACT ON THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Buildings with light timber framing system and plasterboards

Buildings comprising inadequate materials or non-fire resistant building materials suffered the most by the fire. The most commonly observed damage was the partial or total collapse of the buildings. The fire-resistant elements remained almost untouched by the fire. Characteristic example was the still standing fireplace and chimney systems. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 36

IMPACT ON THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Buildings with light timber framing system and plasterboards

Partial or total collapse of buildings comprising extremely cheap and inadequate for construction materials or non-fire resistant building materials ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 37

IMPACT ON INFRASTRUCTURES AND LIFE LINES

Damage in the low and medium voltage distribution networks included cut low voltage cables and damaged medium voltage poles respectively ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 38

IMPACT ON INFRASTRUCTURES AND LIFE LINES

Damage on the water network of the fire-affected area ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 39

IMPACT ON VEHICLES

305 burned cars The melting of the aluminum wheel rims and the car glasses is indicative of the high temperatures developed during the course of the fire. It is significant to note that the melting point of the aluminum is about 660° C, while glass completely melts/ liquefies at approximately 1400°C to 1600°C depending on the composition of glass. Moreover, a tire must be heated to at least 400 °C for a period of several minutes prior to ignition. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 40

IMPACT ON VEHICLES

The high melting points of the various parts of the burned vehicles do not indicate that the heat wave of the fire reached these temperatures during the fast spread of the fire. The heat wave of the fire was responsible for the initial engulfing of cars by flames, while the higher temperatures are associated with the ignition and the combustion of the various parts of the cars [tires, wheels, glasses, plastic parts of the cars, oil and fuel (petrol, diesel, autogas) tanks]. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 41

IMPACT OF BURNT VEHICLES ON THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Buildings with reinforced concrete frame & masonry infill - partition walls affected by explosions of cars engulfed in flames

Destruction of external and internal combustible contents of the ground floor of a building caused by explosion of cars engulfed in flames ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 42

ACTIVATION OF THE EU CIVIL PROTECTION MECHANISM

A significant European initiative has been the establishment of the European Civil Protection Mechanism for the coordination of the Civil Protection interventions in cases of disasters. The legislative framework for the assistance offered was defined by a Council Decision in 2001 (Decision 2001/792), establishing a Community mechanism to facilitate reinforced cooperation in Civil Protection assistance interventions within and outside the EU. The Mechanism has been reinforced ever since and accepting all the more calls for assistance. After the evaluation of the Mechanism’s actions, it was found out that there was a need to revise its legal framework. On 8.11.2007 the Council Decision 2007/779/EC was issued and amended the previous one. According to the new Decision, the Mechanism’s aim is to enhance the cooperation of Member States, in the event of natural and man-made disasters, acts of terrorism and, technological, radiological or environmental accidents, including accidental marine pollution at peaceful times. Every country that is afflicted by major disasters can call for assistance and mobilize operational means that have been voluntarily provided to the EU by the countries of the Mechanism. Its participating countries are 31 countries; 27 Member States and the (3) countries of the European Economic Area (EEA), Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Croatia.

On 23/7/2018 evening Greece requested EU support through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. In an immediate response, Cyprus, Spain and Bulgaria made swift offers of assistance, which included planes, firefighters, medics, and vehicles. Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides travelled to Athens today and met the Greek civil protection authorities and coordinate the EU's assistance already on its way. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 43

GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR SELF CARE & SUPPORT

Τι μπορεί να βιώσω μετά Πώς να φροντίσω τον εαυτό μου; Και αν χρειαστώ επιπλέον Υπάρχουν ορισμένα πράγματα που μπορείτε να κάνετε για από την πυρκαγιά; να αντιμετωπίσετε το στρες και να προστατέψετε τη υποστήριξη; Μετά από μία τέτοια καταστροφή, μπορεί συναισθηματική και σωματική σας ευεξία: Είναι σημαντικό να θυμάστε πως μπορεί να να βιώσετε κάποια απο τα παρακάτω: • Φροντίστε πρώτα να είστε ασφαλείς και να χρειαστεί χρόνος για να επιστρέψετε στο  Λύπη καλύψετε τις ανάγκες σας σε νερό, τροφή και πώς νιώθατε πριν από την καταστροφή. κατάλυμα  Θυμό Ωστόσο μη διστάσετε να συμβουλευτείτε • Ενημερωθείτε για τις παροχές και την υποστήριξη  Ενοχές που μπορείτε να λάβετε από την κοινότητα σας και έναν ψυχολόγο, έναν κοινωνικό λειτουργό ή  Συναισθηματικό μούδιασμα τις κρατικές υπηρεσίες έναν επαγγελματία ψυχικής υγείας εάν  Εφιάλτες/Δυσκολίες στον ύπνο • Παραμείνετε ενεργοί. Προσφέρετε εθελοντική διαπιστώσετε πως δυσκολεύεστε με τα  Συνεχή αίσθηση κινδύνου εργασία, εάν το επιθυμείτε, ή βοήθεια στις ακόλουθα: διαδικασίες καθαρισμού και επισκευών, εφόσον • Διαχείριση των συναισθημάτων σας αυτό είναι ασφαλές. • Ολοκλήρωση των καθημερινών εργασιών • Βεβαιωθείτε ότι κάνετε συχνά διαλείμματα από τις Αυτές είναι όλες ΦΥΣΙΟΛΟΓΙΚΕΣ σας προσπάθειες καθαρισμού και αποκατάστασης. • Φροντίδα της οικογένειάς σας αντιδράσεις στο στρες και στις • Περάστε χρόνο με τους αγαπημένους σας, τους περισσότερες περιπτώσεις θα εξαλειφθούν συγγενείς και φίλους σας. με την πάροδο του χρόνου. • Προσπαθήστε να συμμετάσχετε σε κάποιες από τις δραστηριότητες που απολαμβάνατε και πριν το συμβάν. • Συζητήστε για τα συναισθήματά σας ανοιχτά, εάν νιώθετε την ανάγκη να το κάνετε. Χρήσιμα τηλέφωνα 80011 80015 Τηλέφωνα έκτακτης Γραμμή «ΜΕ Υποστηρίζω», καθημερινά 9.00-15.00, στη ανάγκης Μονάδα Εφηβικής Υγείας (Μ.Ε.Υ.) της Β΄ Παιδιατρικής Κλινικής του Πανεπιστημίου Αθηνών. 197: Τηλεφωνική Γραμμή 2294320011 Άμεσης Κοινωνικής Βοήθειας Κέντρο Υγείας Ραφήνας – Πικερμίου- Ψυχοκοινωνική 112: Ευρωπαϊκός αριθμός Στήριξη πληγέντων από Ψυχολόγους του ΚΕΕΛΠΝΟ έκτακτης ανάγκης.

Ενημερωτικό φυλλάδιο Γενικές οδηγίες για φροντίδα εαυτού και υποστήριξη ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 44

PRELIMINARY RESULTS

1. This is a typical case of wildland urban interface fire, that spread as an 7. A first estimate is that affected residences and buildings included mostly active crown fire. These zones are among the most probable to suffer elevated or storeyed constructions, while ground floors or basements human casualties globally. There are many such zones throughout Greece. suffered statistically less damage, a typical performance of a crown fire. Moreover, significant differences on impacts were spotted among buildings, 2. During the fire, strong west winds, with velocity exceeding 90 km/h probably attributed to building materials and adjacent vegetation. locally and in certain time spans (between 17:00 – 21:00 on 23/7/2018), as well as their interaction with topography, played a crucial role to the rapid 8. The first conclusions, based on witnesses accounts (still under systematic downslope spread of the fire front. analysis) point to the fact that the escape attempt was uncontrolled and not an organized evacuation procedure. This resulted in a “traffic jam” caused 3. The rapid spread of the fire contributed to the minimization of the by the large number of people trying to flee the area in a state of panic. In available time for reaction, leading, in combination with other factors, to a addition to the number of inhabitants, there was also a great number of great number of fatalities and casualties. visitors, many of which were unaware of the geographical particularities of the area. 4. According to witnesses and reports that are being systematically analyzed, it is concluded that the population that happened to be near the 9. The coastline morphology hindered the access to the sea (steep coast at the time, at least in some locations, were informed about the coastline). The access routes were limited and the lack of visibility due to rapidly approaching fire, not in the form of early warning by some authority, the smoke greatly contributed to the entrapment of people. but by people evacuating the western (uphill) part of Mati settlement. This indicates that the population had almost zero available time between the 10. It is possible that the change in fire behavior was caused by the change moment of awareness of the threat and the ultimate appropriate moment of in vegetation type. The fire started rapidly in previously fire-affected areas decision making for reaction. of low-lying vegetation and spread to a non-affected area comprising a great fire fuel load. That lead to fire propagation and a higher energy 5. A significant factor that contributed to the disaster is attributed to the release in the down-slope area between Neos Voutzas and the coastline. urban planning (or the lack of it) in the area, that functioned as a “trap” for East of Marathonos Avenue, the fire, as a wind driven “wall of fire” swept the evacuating population. Some of the important features include narrow both the low-lying vegetation and the high-standing trees (active crown streets (2.7 m at some locations), numerous dead ends, particularly long fire). In addition, tens of firebrands were spread towards the coastline. road blocks, no possibility of lateral escape, lack of concentration/refuge areas (e.g. sports fields, squares, etc). A wide street parallel to the coastline 11. In buildings with reinforced concrete frame and brick infill - partition could have played the role of escape route towards the adjacent walls and closed windows, the fire did not spread to the interior. The only settlements. observed effect is the surface deformation of the plasters, with no effect to the structural elements of the building, due to the short impact of the fire. 6. Field research found specific weaknesses on structures with The present report includes preliminary data and conclusions of an ongoing research vulnerabilities on the roofs, frames, surrounding spaces and other parts. At (31/7/2018), therefore they may be subject to changes. the same time, a large number of totally destructed buildings was recorded. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 45

PRELIMINARY RESULTS

12. On the contrary, in similar buildings with wooden or plastic open windows, the fire spread to the interior, the impact time was longer and higher temperatures developed, due to the combustion of building equipment. This fact lead to the formation of cracks that can affect not only the non-structural elements of the buildings, but also its structural load- bearing frame.

13. Unfortunately, these cracks were aggravated by the water used during the fire-fighting operations. The already hot concrete is rapidly cooled down by 50-55oC resulting in not only the spreading of the already formed cracks but also the formation of new ones.

14. The well designed and constructed reinforced concrete buildings that were affected by firebrands attack, radiant heat exposure and/or flame contact, but the fire did not spread to the interior, behaved very well and suffered only light damage to the external non-structural elements, such as mainly small cracks on masonry walls and detachment of small pieces of plaster, due to the high temperatures developed on the external walls of the buildings.

15. The structural adequacy of the fire-affected buildings greatly depends on the duration of the burning outside the building, on the degree and depth of concrete disintegration and the state of the reinforcement bars caused by the duration of thermal exposure of the buildings interior.

The present report includes preliminary data and conclusions of an ongoing research (31/7/2018), therefore they may be subject to changes. ISSN 2653-9454 Issue No. 8, August 2018 | 46